While we strongly hinted that there would be some change forthcoming in PennLive’s Class A boys’ basketball rankings since several head-to-head scraps were in the works in a number of Pennsylvania’s district tournaments.
And, as a result, adjustments you shall have.
Although Monessen was routed by Lincoln Park in the WPIAL championship, Joe Salvino’s Greyhounds were able to register a stirring 110-99 victory over Vincentian in the semis. That’s why Vincentian now sits below No. 7 Monessen.
The real surprise came in District 9, where Ridgway was crowned champion after defeating Elk County Catholic . Since Ridgway is 1-4 against ECC and Johnsonburg, the Elkers weren’t yet able to crack the top 10.
Johnsonburg’s 66-47 loss to Elk County Catholic in the 9-A semis forced us to drop Bill Shuey’s Rams from No. 5 to No. 10, one spot below ECC.
So, as we’ve said all along and as we head into the state playoffs, stay tuned.
While short synopses of our top 10 appear below — PIAA district, overall records and record for the week are displayed in parentheses — we also have a lengthy list of others that may leave a mark or two on the state tournament.
1. Lincoln Park Charter (7, 25-1, 2-0) — previous ranking: 1 — Make that 19 consecutive victories for Mark Javens’ Leopards, who popped North Catholic (75-58) and Monessen (85-41) and claimed the WPIAL championship. Maverick Rowan unloaded in both outings, scoring 35 and 26 points, respectively. Terrific numbers also came from big man Elijah Minnie (16/20). Will open state play Tuesday night against the Johnsonburg program that stood between LP and last year’s state final.
2. Math, Civics & Sciences (12, 11-14, 0-0) — previous ranking: 2 — Dan Jackson’s Mighty Elephants were idle last week, spending that stretch working out the kinks in time for Friday’s state tournament opener with Delco Christian.
3. Bishop Carroll (6, 25-0, 2-0) — previous ranking: 3 — While Cosie Aliquo’s Huskies encountered little resistance from Juniata Valley (64-31) in the District 6-A semis, that certainly wasn’t the case days later in the 6-A final as Bishop Guilfoyle scrapped and scrapped before falling 51-48. Brandon Martinazzi (23/11) and Marcus Lee (10/13) reached double digits in both wins for Carroll, which will open state play Friday against Clarion-Limestone.
4. St. John Neumann (4, 27-0, 2-0) — previous ranking: 4 — Paul Petcavage’s Golden Knights claimed gold for the second straight year by riding victories over Mansfield (74-62) and Sullivan County (61-48) to the District 4-A crown. Alize Johnson posted a triple-double (24p, 16r, 10a) in the victory over Mansfield, then popped a double-double (10p, 12r) against Sullivan. Five others reached double figures during the week for Neumann — Nasza Short cranked out a career-high 28 points in the win over Mansfield — which will meet Greenwood in its Friday state opener.
5. Church Farm (1, 23-4, 2-0) — previous ranking: 8 — Marc Turner’s Griffins stretched their winning streak to 20 games by subduing Delco Christian (68-32) and Phil-Mont Christian (68-60) and winning their fourth straight District 1-A title. Aondofa Anyam (20/18), Joey Shelton (17/12) and Tyler Ofray (13/22) reached double digits in both wins for Church Farm, which will collide with Lebanon Catholic in Friday’s state tournament opener.
6. Mahanoy Area (11, 24-2, 0-0) — previous ranking: 10 — Mickey Holland’s Golden Bears may have enjoyed more than a week off before diving into postseason play, but they showed little rust while decking Notre Dame-East Stroudsburg (59-32) and Pius X (62-42) and winning the District 11-A title. Tyler Cavenas (16/32) and Dylan Mahmod (14/16) cracked double figures in both successes — Cavenas had 12 boards in the final — for a Mahanoy side that will open state play against Galeton.
7. Monessen (7, 20-6, 1-1) — previous ranking: 7 — Joe Salvino’s Greyhounds may have stretched their winning streak to eight games by outrunning Vincentian (110-99), but they certainly ran into trouble against Lincoln Park (85-41 loss) in the WPIAL title game. Clintell Gillaspie (32), Justice Rice (23), Jaden Altomare (18) and Javon Brown (16) combined for 89 points in the win over Vincentian, but only Brown (10) reached double digits when Monessen met Lincoln Park. Will open state play Friday against District 10-A upstart Erie First Christian.
8. Vincentian (7, 22-3, 0-1) — previous ranking: 6 — George Yokitis’ Royals popped five players into double figures in their lone outing — Jim Kenna (22), Jamison Nee (19), Ryan Wolf (17), Jay Cortese (16) and Kevin Fischer (11) shared 85 points — but it wasn’t enough to avoid a 110-99 loss to Monessen in the WPIAL semis. Will open state play Friday against District 10-A champ Cochranton.
9. Elk County Catholic (9, 23-4, 1-1) — previous ranking: 9 — Although Aaron Straub’s Crusaders were able to slide past nemesis Johnsonburg (66-47) in the 9-A semis, ECC tumbled to Ridgway (48-41) in the title game. Cory Huff cranked out a pair of double-doubles (16 points, 13 rebounds against Johnsonburg/12 points, 15 boards against Ridgway) for Straub’s Crusaders, who will begin state play Friday against Homer-Center.
10. Johnsonburg (9, 23-4, 1-1) — previous ranking: 5 — Despite a double-double from Cameron Grumley (20 points, 15 boards), Bill Shuey’s Rams fell 66-47 to Elk County Catholic in the District 9-A semis. Although Grumley was unavailable for the 9-A third-place game, Johnsonburg held off Clarion-Limestone 57-54 behind double-doubles from Cole Peterson (25 points, 11 boards) and Zane Hodgdon (13 points, 11 rebounds). Will open state play Friday against Lincoln Park Charter.
OTHERS TO WATCH: Berlin Brothersvalley (5) 23-2, Bishop Guilfoyle (6) 19-6, Clarion-Limestone (9) 22-4, Cochranton (10) 21-3, Erie First Christian (10) 15-9, Forbes Road (5) 16-8, Galeton (4) 20-5, Greenwood (3) 18-7, Homer-Center (6) 22-3, Kennedy Catholic (10) 14-9, Lebanon Catholic (3) 17-8, Mount Calvary (3) 22-4, New Hope Academy (3) 14-9, North Catholic (7) 15-10, Phil-Mont Christian (1) 19-5, Pius X (11) 19-4, Ridgway (9) 20-6, Sullivan County (4) 19-6.
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